Gaming News

The revival and reinvention of Disney's Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers hits Disney+ today with a new film that turns the chipmunk duo's cartoon adventures into a Hollywood-focused satire set years after their fame has faded. In it, Chip and Dale deal with the realities of staying relevant in an industry that has changed significantly over the course of multiple decades. In one scene at a fan convention, the Rangers run into a familiar face that we never thought we'd actually see in a finished film, Ugly Sonic. That's right, the version of Sonic the Hedgehog that caused the 2020 film to be delayed and re-modeled makes his triumphant return in Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers. Polygon spoke with Akiva Schaffer, the director of Chip 'n Dale, who said getting the rejected mascot likeness is one of his favorite cameos in the movie. "It’s one of my favorite things in the movie. And I’m very excited for people to see it," Schaffer told Polygon. "I don’t know what I should, what I’m allowed to say [about it]. I think I will actually plead the fifth.” I want more of Tim Robinson as Ugly Sonic pic.twitter.com/cxvLCwFn6I — Gus Lanzetta (@GusLanzetta) May 20, 2022 Ugly Sonic is played to perfection by I Think You Should Leave creator and star, Tim Robinson. In the scene where Sonic appears, he has a full booth with photos showing off his range and talks about the time the internet got a look at his human teeth and "burned the place down." It's okay though because he has a pretty sweet reality show in the works. Not only does Ugly Sonic show his mug in the film, but plenty of other animated characters also show up as well. In a way, the movie is like a modern-day Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Schaffer told Polygon, “It was super-important to me to get a bunch of third-party cartoons, because if this is going to be some sort of a celebration of animation, it can’t just be a celebration of Disney animation." You can see Ugly Sonic for yourself in Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers, which is available to watch now on Disney+. You can read our review of Handsome Sonic's latest film Sonic the Hedgehog 2 here.

This week marks the end of the first season of Halo's television adaptation, and while it was a rocky season, at least you can enjoy listening to the GI editors talk the ups and downs. The finale of the special GI Show review series is now available to watch or listen to here. With the end of that season also comes the end of the week, which was full of plenty of great Game Informer stories to catch up on over the weekend. We announced our newest cover story! Check out our announcement featuring The Callisto Protocol. Arclight Rumble Preview: I Don't Know Anything About Warcraft But I'm Enjoying Arclight Rumble MultiVersus Preview: Warner Bros' Brawler Is Delightful But Needs Impact Tango Gameworks: A Decade Later Escape Academy Preview: A Campus Tour Of This Colorful Escape Room Simulator Salt And Sacrifice Review: Consumed By Frustration Vampire The Masquerade – Swansong Review: A Sharp Narrative Bite The Best Surprise Gaming Spinoffs With the plugs out of the way, let's see what some of the GI staff has planned over the next few days.  Wesley LeBlanc – This weekend, I’m going to say something I don’t think I’ve ever said but I’m excited to spend a lot of time playing a mobile game. It’s not that I’m against mobile games – Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel has been occupying a lot of my time lately – but I rarely ever seek out time to play them. I usually just play them in passing or when I have a few minutes to do so, but this weekend, I’m going to continue playing Warcraft Arclight Rumble. You can read my thoughts on it so far here, but it’s a great time. Elsewhere, I might rewatch Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith in anticipation of Obi-Wan Kenobi beginning on Disney Plus next week. Hope you have a great weekend! Play some games!! Brian Shea – This weekend, I'm spending my time playing Mini Motorways. I talked about it on this week's episode of All Things Nintendo and I'm absolutely loving it. It's the follow-up to one of my favorite mobile games of all time, and it plays remarkably well on Switch. Outside of that, I'll be spending most of my time outside since we're finally getting some gorgeous weather these past couple of weeks. Maybe an excuse to start Pokémon Go back up? Alex Van Aken – This weekend I'm flying back home to Virginia to visit my dad in the ICU. He's been in the hospital for 45 days and I haven't seen him since before his liver transplant roughly three weeks ago. While most of my time will be spent with family, I am looking forward to downloading a few relaxing games on my Nintendo Switch and MacBook Pro. On Switch, I'll be checking out an older puzzle game from my wishlist, A Monster's Expedition, and possibly OlliOlli World. On the ol' laptop, I look forward to enjoying a rollercoaster business sim game called Parkitect, inspired by the old Rollercoaster Tycoon series (a personal favorite). Lastly, if there's time, I'm going to be cranking it on my brand new Playdate! I have really enjoyed playing Casual Birder on that thing. John Carson – I feel like I've been running a marathon at work the last two weeks, and I'm going to spend my weekend in maximum relaxation mode. First, I'll be finally getting to the PC port of Monster Hunter Rise and getting my hunter ready for Sunbreak next month. Ever since I reviewed Salt and Sacrifice, I've been itching to play MonHun, and now I have a chance. I'll be checking out that Chip 'n Dale movie tonight, and meeting up with friends for some drinks and Magic for Commander night on Sunday. Hopefully, none of us will spill a beer on the table during the game like last week.  Marcus Stewart – When I’m not playing a game for review, I’ll be dipping my toes (or fingers?) into, you guessed, Elden Ring. Hour 150 has been achieved, and I’ve been dueling Malenia to no success. I’m inching closer and closer to victory and feel close to sealing the deal. Other than that, I’ll be watching wrestling, catching up on comics, and taking my bike out to enjoy some, hopefully, sunny Florida weather. And now it's your turn, GI Community! What kind of trouble are you getting yourselves into over the coming weekend? Are you seeing any movies, visiting family, returning to your favorite game, or discovering a new book series? Let us know all about your plans in the comments below!

Mergers, acquisitions, and consolidation are all the rage with major conglomerates these days. Microsoft is in the process of acquiring Activision Blizzard, Discovery and Time Warner have recently finished merging into one mega-media empire, and Sony is bringing Destiny developer Bungie into the PlayStation family. What we didn't know about is a now-failed bid for NBC Universal to strengthen its hand by folding Electronic Arts into its corporate umbrella.  According to a report from Dylan Byers at Puck News, the merging of EA into NBC Universal was well in motion until the deal fell apart in April. Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation, is said to have wanted to inject the business with an influx of new IP and brands for some time now, and EA was in the crosshairs most recently. "In the wake of the Microsoft-Activision deal, Roberts approached Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson with a proposal to spin off NBCUniversal and merge the media and gaming giants, four sources with knowledge of the proposal told me," writes Byers. He says the deal was negotiated for weeks, and the most common outcome, if it went through, would have had Andrew Wilson leading this new amalgamation with NBCUniversal head Jeff Shell elevated within Comcast. The deal was later destined to fall apart as the two parties could not reach an agreement on monetary figures and corporate structure, according to Byers' story. Despite the recency of the shattering of this merger, Byers also states that EA has been looking toward Disney for a similar business deal. His sources call the relationship EA wants with Disney as "'a more meaningful relationship' than licensing deals." Byers points out that the mixing of ESPN and EA Sports could prove to be a lucrative unification for both sides. While none of this has been publically mentioned by any of the involved entities, we'll keep an eye out for traces of any of this moving forward. As of now, Electronic Arts is staying solo but seems open to combining forces with another company if the proper offer comes along.  [Source: Puck News]

The delay train keeps on rolling. In a week that saw Kerbal Space Program 2 and Test Drive Unlimited: Solar Crown get pushed to 2023, one of the year’s promising indie titles won’t be arriving in 2022 either. Tchia was first announced at the 2020 Game Awards and unfolds on a beautiful island inspired by New Caledonia. Players control a young girl with the magical ability to inhabit the bodies of animals as well as inanimate objects, such as coconuts. Exploration involves sailing to different tropical islands in an open ocean as well as climbing through forests and soaring across the landscape on a glider. The game last appeared at the 2021 Game Awards where it got a 2022 release window.  Update on Tchia ⬇️💚 pic.twitter.com/knQYkJSYT1 — Tchia (Awaceb) - Wishlist it! (@awaceb) May 20, 2022 Developer Awaceb posted an update on Twitter explaining that it needs to delay the game to tinker on it further, saying in part “this extra time will allow us to really polish every aspect of the game and flesh out all the little details that we know will make Tchia a really special experience.”  Tchia is slated to launch on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC. You can catch up on every big game delayed to next year here. 

First Person Shooter: The Ultimate FPS Documentary is an upcoming film that examines the history of the FPS genre through the lens of its designers and players. The project was successfully Kickstarted in 2021 and is gaining additional funding through an Indiegogo campaign. Game Informer shares an exclusive clip of the film covering the creation of Halo: Combat Evolved, including the importance of Master Chief and Cortana's relationship from the eyes of its creators.  The five-minute clip is a snippet from the over three-hour documentary that features over 100 hours of interview footage with designers such as John Carmack, John Romero, Cliff Bleszinski, Warren Spector, American McGee, and more. The film also includes insight from professional shooter players and industry experts as they unpack the genre's origin, evolution, and impact on the industry and pop culture.  First Person Shooter: The Ultimate FPS Documentary is directed by authors David L. Craddock and Chris Stratton. The project is in post-production and scheduled to release sometime during Q4 2022. You can learn more by visiting the movie's Indiegogo campaign, which concludes on May 28. 

Death Stranding hit the PlayStation 4 back in 2019. Since its release, and subsequent Director’s Cut rerelease, fans have wondered what was next for Hideo Kojima, the director of Death Stranding and the Metal Gear Solid series.  It seems that what’s next might be a sequel to Death Stranding. That’s because in a new interview with Leo, Death Stranding actor Norman Reedus, who plays Sam Bridges in the game, seems to have confirmed a second one is now in production, as spotted first by GamerUP on Twitter. When asked about Death Stranding, Reedus said “we just started the second one” before diving deeper into how he got involved with the first Death Stranding.  Death Stranding 2, or a sequel to Death Stranding, has not been officially revealed or even hinted at by PlayStation or Kojima. Of course, Kojima could be working on other games right now too – in fact, he recently hinted that he might be working on two upcoming games – and those might even release before this Death Stranding sequel if what Reedus said is true. Only time will tell for now but it’s great to be a Death Stranding fan, it seems.  In the meantime, read Game Informer’s Death Stranding review and then read our impressions of Death Stranding Director’s Cut. Read about how Kojima might be working on two upcoming games after that.  [Source: Leo via GamerUP] Do you want a sequel to Death Stranding? Let us know in the comments below!

Super Rare Games has announced the Super Rare Mixtape Vol.3, a curated physical compilation of games from the “grassroots indie game scene” that harkens back to the days when mixtapes were physical items we could actually hold, and it looks awesome.  As the name implies, this is the third indie game mixtape released by Super Rare. Like previous mixtapes, this one contains a ton of indie games, demos, concept art galleries, audio commentary tracks, and more. Only 2000 copies will be available for sale on PC and they’ll go live on May 26 at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET/6 p.m. BST on superraregames.com.  Super Rare “Includes hardcore platformers, low-poly horrors, tactical games, classic RPGs, wholesome exploration games, arcade-like games, and even Dink Smallwood, a 1998 RPG that inspired huge games like Borderlands and Baldur’s Gate,” a press release reads. “Mixtapes are showcases of pure originality and creativity, giving indies the attention and preservation they deserve.”  Here’s what you can expect on Super Rare Mixtape Vol. 3: 30 games: a hand-curated selection of 30 games from grassroots indie developers, chosen for maximum variety of genres and art styles.  Six demos USB tape cassette: the collection of games are stored on this tape cassette with a built-in custom launcher for “easy plug ‘n’ play use on any Windows PC or laptop.” Collector’s box: this slim box is designed to fit with your games collection, Super Rare says, and includes a full-color manual with a full page dedicated to each of the 36 titles and a description of why they were selected for this collection.  Bonus features: these include 24 concept art galleries and seven developer audio commentaries, helping “preserve the stories behind these games that would otherwise have been lost to time.”  Here’s a full list of the games included: After Midnight, birdsong, Bonkers, Commuting, Dank Tomb, Die in the Dungeon CLASSIC, Dink Smallwood HD, Estigma, Finterior Decorator, FurnCap, Gone Wandering, Hot Pot Panic, Inferna, It’s Paper Guy!, Jayce, liminal ranger, Only Cassette Coloring!, Palmystery, PEN GUNS, Pocketon Peak, Reticle_Star, Saucy Boy Adventures, Seaway, Shotdogs, Slide in the Woods, SpaceScape, Spectrum Valley, Tap Tricks, The Telwynium, and Ugby Mumba 3.  There are also demos for Dorfromantik, Enchain, Esse Proxy, Lost Nova, Pompom: The Great Space Rescue, and Producer (2021).  “Super Rare Games keeps absolutely zero rights over these titles, which may continue to be available freely online – we simply hope to highlight and physically preserve them with this collection,” Ryan Brown of Super Rare Games writes in the press release. “On a personal note – Mixtape is my passion project and anyone who knows me knows how much it means to me. I have a list of 100s of titles I’d love to include on future volumes that I’m sure you’d enjoy.  “Thanks to the Super Rare Games team, all the developers involved, and every single person who picks up a copy. You’re making a dream come true for myself and all the small indie devs featured on this volume. It means more than you’ll ever, ever know.” 

Nintendo announced in February that it plans to discontinue Wii U and 3DS eShop purchases in March 2023. However, the sunsetting process gradually rolls out throughout 2022. The lights begin turning off on Monday, May 23, when players lose the ability to add eShop funds using credit cards. If you’ve recently turned on your 3DS or Wii U, you likely received a notification reminding you that your stored credit cards will soon become useless. You’ll still be able to add money using Nintendo eShop gift cards – that option won’t disappear until August 29. But if you want to take advantage of the convenience of using your own payment methods without taking a trip to the store, this weekend is your last chance to unleash a final spending spree. Nintendo has not specified the exact time on Monday that credit cards will be disabled.   Keep in mind that even once credit and gift card options go away, players can link their Nintendo Network ID wallet (used for the 3DS/Wii U stores) with their Nintendo Account wallet (used to buy Switch games). The combined balance of both wallets can be used buy software on all three platforms. Once August passes, this will be the only method of buying 3DS/Wii U games until the March deadline. Afterward, whatever funds remain can only be spent on Switch purchases.  As a final reminder, you will still be able to play 3DS/Wii U games online and redownload purchased games, DLC, and updates after March 2023. Nintendo states this will remain the case for “the foreseeable future.” For more information, visit Nintendo’s Q&A support page for the shutdown process. 

Players have speculated that Obi-Wan Kenobi could be making his way to Fortnite soon for a number of reasons. For starters, the upcoming Disney Plus show, Obi-Wan Kenobi, begins next week and Disney and Fortnite have an extensive history of collaborating ahead of big releases like movies or TV shows. There’s also the fact that Obi-Wan’s lightsaber is already in Fortnite as it was one of four added to the game during its May the Fourth Star Wars Celebration period.  Now, it’s official: the Jedi master is coming to Fortnite to find the high ground. More specifically, he’ll hit the Fortnite Item Shop on Thursday, May 26, at 8 p.m. ET. That’s just in time for his big Disney Plus show, which begins the next day. As for what to expect, here’s a look:  As you can see, the Obi-Wan Kenobi Outfit looks like you’d expect – it’s fair to say actor Ewan McGregor is now in Fortnite, too, thanks to his likeness now being in the game. However, there are other items available in the Fortnite Item Shop too:  Desert Essentials Back Bling (included with the outfit): An assortment of tools perfect for living an isolated existence on a remote desert planet.  Obi-Wan’s Blade Pickaxe: An elegant harvesting tool for a more civilized age.  Jedi Interceptor Glider: Your new fighter has arrived.  Obi-Wan’s Message Emote: An important transmission… Epic Games says these items will be available individually or together in a bundle. This package also includes the Kenobi, Surrounded Loading Screen, which you can view below:  Last but not least, the Obi-Wan Kenobi Cup begins this Sunday, May 22, and will be a battle royale duos tournament. In it, you’ll have a chance to earn the Obi-Wan Kenobi Outfit and Desert Essentials Back Bling early.  While waiting for Obi-Wan Kenobi to hit the game, check out Robocop, who was recently added to Fortnite, and then check out Scarlet Witch, who joined the roster as well. Read about how Fortnite V-Bucks purchased on PlayStation can now be used across all platforms after that.  Are you going to be picking up the Obi-Wan Kenobi Outfit? Let us know in the comments below!

TT Games’ Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga hit consoles and PC last month and since its release, it’s received two new character packs. Today, however, it received its first patch and after downloading it, you’ll find that there are 34 new Kyber Bricks to discover.  While this is the first update for The Skywalker Saga, it is surprisingly a smaller one, bringing just a few fixes and a handful of Capital Ship encounters with it, as reported by Nintendo Everything. Here’s a look at the full patch notes for this May 2022 update:  Numerous fixes to stability, quality, progression and performance issues throughout the title, including fixes for: Issue in Episode 7 where in certain situations Maz would not be present on Takodana to continue Story mission ‘Friends of the Resistance’. Issue in Episode 3 where in certain situations the level trigger for ‘The High Ground’ could fail to appear. Issue in ‘Green Harvest’ freeplay mission where under certain criteria the camera would be stuck on Tatooine indefinitely. Implemented 4 new Capital Ship encounters in Local Space adding 34 additional Kyber Bricks to collect: Fulminatrix Home One Invisible Hand Venator As you can see, the patch fixes three issues that, if encountered, could stop your progression forward in the game. It also adds four new Capital Ship encounters to The Skywalker Saga, which includes with it 34 additional Kyber Bricks to collect.  While waiting for this patch to download, read Game Informer’s Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga review, and then check out our guide of codes to unlock additional characters in Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. Check out these awesome new Star Wars dioramas recently debuted by Lego after that.  [Source: Nintendo Everything] Have you played Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga? Let us know what you think of it in the comments below!

Trophy hunters, be on alert! According to Bend Studio, PlayStation's trophies are coming to select classic games included with the new PlayStation Plus subscription tiers. Incoming From Bend Studio: Agency intel reports that Syphon Filter will include Trophies when it arrives on the all-new PlayStation Plus. pic.twitter.com/YVdMixZxBR — Bend Studio is Hiring! (@BendStudio) May 19, 2022 Bend Studio announced in a tweet today that Syphon Filter is going to come packed with trophies to obtain when it releases as part of the upcoming PlayStation Plus expansion. The tweet reads, "Incoming From Bend Studio: Agency intel reports that Syphon Filter will include trophies when it arrives on the all-new PlayStation Plus." The message was delivered with an attached video of a silver trophy notification for a milestone called "An Explosive Start." A follow-up tweet reveals the existence of a platinum trophy for the game as well. That trophy has the name "Excellent work, Agent." With the reveal of Syphon Filter joining the ranks of platinum-able games, more studios will hopefully follow suit and reveal whether their games will use the achievement system. Sony unveiled a selection of games coming to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium subscription tiers, including original PlayStation games like Ape Escape, Hot Shots Golf, I.Q. Intelligent Cube, and Jumping Flash, though Syphon Filter is the only one on the list confirmed for trophy support. PlayStation Plus' revamp adds two more pricing tiers with value-adds such as a downloadable game library and cloud streaming on compatible devices and PCs. You can read about the pricing and tier differences here. The new subscription tiers go live on June 13 in North America. Which classic PlayStation games would you like to see with trophy support? Let us know in the comments! 

June is fast approaching, and while there won’t be an E3, we’ll still get plenty of announcements thanks to a variety of summer gaming showcases. Most of them come out of Summer Game Fest, Geoff Keighley’s annual onslaught of livestreams and world premieres, but there are a few non-Keighley branded streams taking place as well. To help you get a grip on what’s going on and when, we’ve compiled all of the announced presentations with dates, times, and a brief description of what each entails. We'll update this list as more livestreams are announced.  June 9  Summer Game Fest Start Time: 11 a.m. Pacific/2 p.m. Eastern What It Is: Geoff Keighley's centerpiece event and arguably the biggest stream of the week kicks off the festivities. If previous years are any indication, expect to see a ton of triple-A reveals, trailers, and other surprises. If you want to make the event feel even bigger, you can take a trip to the theater to watch the presentation in IMAX.  June 10  Netflix Geeked Week Start Time: 10 a.m. Pacific/1 p.m. Eastern What It Is: If you're looking for the next show to “Netflix and Chill,” Geeked Week will highlight around 60 upcoming movies and TV series making their way to the service. As the name implies, Geeked Week spans multiple days and will offer looks at gaming adaptations such as Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and Resident Evil.  Tribeca Games Spotlight Start Time: 12 p.m. Pacific/3 p.m. Eastern What It Is: This stream celebrates the titles officially selected by Tribeca to compete for the Tribeca Games Award. Expect exclusive gameplay reveals and developer interviews for the following titles: A Plague Tale: Requiem, American Arcadia, As Dusk Falls, Cuphead - The Delicious Last Course, Immortality, Oxenfree II: Lost Signals, The Cub, Thirsty Suitors, and Venba.  June 11 Guerrilla Collective Start Time: 8 a.m. Pacific/11 a.m. Eastern What It Is: Can't get enough indie games? The Guerrilla Collective traditionally showcases dozens upon dozens of promising independent titles, several of which will appear exclusively at the event.  Wholesome Games Direct Start Time: 9:30 a.m. Pacific/12:30 p.m. Eastern What It Is: The Wholesome Direct serves as a companion show to the Guerrilla event that shines a spotlight on cozier indie titles designed to make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. A teaser trailer hints that we'll get new looks at games such as Coffee Talk Episode 2, Lil Gator Game, and Ooblets.  Future Games Show Start Time: 12 p.m. Pacific/3 p.m. Eastern What It Is: The good folks at GamesRadar hosts this yearly showcase. The outlet promises one hour of world premieres, trailers, and developer interviews for around 40 upcoming titles. The confirmed publishers involved include Team17, Thunderful, and Amanita Design.  June 12 Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase Start Time: 10 a.m. Pacific/1 p.m. Eastern What It Is: If you fancy yourself a fan of all things Xbox, this is the show for you. Expect a litany of reveals and updates from Microsoft's slate of third-party studios with Bethesda having time carved out for its announcements.  PC Gaming Show Start Time: 12 p.m. Pacific/3 p.m. Eastern What It Is: The PC Gaming Show is exactly what it sounds like: a cornucopia of new game announcements for your personal computer. However, even console fans shouldn't overlook this event. You never know what might make its way to PlayStation, Xbox, and/or Switch.